Rekindling Christmas (3 page)

Phillip was half Black and half Korean,
and because of the great blend of Phillip’s mixed heritage, women had always
flocked to Carson’s best friend. Even in middle school, girls would look past
the skinny white boy and go straight for Phillip. If that wasn’t bad enough, Carson
had an older brother that was build like a Greek god. Having a friend that
could attract women with a simple smile just made Carson seem a little more
pathetic.

However, Carson had finally grown
into his own skin in college, and with Phillip’s help, he’d made up for lost time.

Carson
figured that getting laid
frequently at such an early age had made his best friend a little shallow when
it came to his choice of women.

“Every man needs a fuck-fest.”
Phillip was staring at the group of women again.

Patting him on the shoulder, Carson said, “Have at them, my friend. I’ve come to ski, sing a carol or two, and that
will be my merry little Christmas.”

“My ass it will. I’m going to make
it my mission to find you the perfect woman. As soon as I get my rocks off once,
then I’ll be on the hunt for you.”

Chuckling, Carson just shook his
head. It was best at times just to let Phillip think what he wanted.

*           *           *

“Good afternoon, everyone. Sorry for
the conference delay.” Manuel Lopez, the conference coordinator, stood behind
the podium in the front of the Central City room at The Brown Palace Hotel in
Denver.

It was the second day of the
conference and Ryanne was anxious to get started. Yesterday, they’d had small
group workshops throughout the day that they all could choose from. But as informative
as those had been, she, like the other two hundred people, were there to get
insight from Tessa Regent.
The
Tessa Regent.

When it came to how to run a product
management company that would stay innovative and bring in high-end revenue to
clients, therefore financially benefiting the management company, Tessa Regent was
the guru.

Ryanne rubbed her hands over the
sleeves of her cashmere sweater. She was actually feeling chill bumps rise on
her skin with the excitement that she would be learning from the woman soon.

“I know you’ve all been patiently
waiting for Ms. Regent,” Manuel continued. His face appeared tight, as if he
hadn’t slept well in days, completely different from the relaxed confidence with
which he had greeted her at the registration desk yesterday morning.

Lifting her glass of water from the
table, Ryanne watched out for condensation droplets splashing on her notepad.
She sipped and wondered what was wrong with the man.

“I’m apologizing now for having to
inform everyone that Ms. Regent will be unable to make it, and we will be
canceling the rest of the conference.”

What
? Shocked by his words, Ryanne
sucked water down her windpipe and began to choke fiercely. Coughing, she
splattered water from her mouth and nose all over her pad, and her shaky hand
up-ended her glass all over the table. Someone used layman first-aid skills and
patted her sharply on her back as she tried to wave them away and get herself
under control. She could see everyone in the room staring at her and the man
with the Sasquatch-sized hands beating her back.

Embarrassed and annoyed at having
her spine practically broken by the Hulk’s twin, she croaked, “I’m fi-nnne. I
am fine!”

She worked on clearing her throat
with small coughs as she forced her breathing to steady. A woman pressed a
napkin in one of Ryanne’s hands and a fresh glass of water in the other. Wiping
the tears from her eyes and the water from her nose, Ryanne thanked the lady,
then took a few cautious drinks to help restore her vocal cords.

Ryanne waved at the coordinator,
hoping he understood she was fine and to continue. Outside of her own
self-inflicted strangulation, she was still more interested in why Tessa Regent
would not be present.

“As I was saying,” Manuel continued
to inform the crowd, now murmuring low in their disappointment, “there was a
blizzard in Salt Lake City yesterday and Ms. Regent has been snowed in. All
flights were canceled. She couldn’t even get a call out to me until about three
a.m. this morning. I attempted to contact other speakers, but with the holiday
a week away, most said they could not make it or were already out of the country.”

The mumbling became more of a low
roar as people expressed their disappointment over having canceled their own holiday
trips for the conference.

“Your companies will be fully
reimbursed for the conference fees. Without Regent or another speaker, the conference
will end today. Any questions, please come see me...”

Manual continued to babble on, but
Ryanne tuned him out as she gathered her now-wet items from the table. After
she got up, she went to catch the elevator before most of the attendees jammed
it up trying to get to their own floors.

She was pissed that there wasn’t
someone to foist her anger and blame on. No one could have stopped the storm
long enough for Tessa to get out of the city and come to Denver. Mother Nature
did her own thing, whenever she felt like it.

Ryanne exited the elevator and then walked
down the lavish hall of the elite hotel and entered her room. Once inside, she
tossed her things on the desk and stepped out of her heels. The thick carpet
under her stocking feet welcomed her.

The classic room, just like the
hotel, was five-star. It was booked for company executives and CEOs, not lower-level
managers. As much as she had enjoyed her two nights’ sleep in the plush queen-size
bed and luxurious room, she was out of her comfort zone and price range.
Sitting on the bed, she tried to wrap her mind around what she needed to do now.

Others at the conference would most
likely stay and enjoy the spa and hotel; however, that was not an option for
her. Since the conference was reimbursing her company for the conference fee,
they would not allow her to claim the room charge for the remaining conference
days on her expense-report form.

Damn it.
She fell back onto the bed and
stared at the smooth eggshell-colored ceiling. She needed to call the airline
and change her departure flight.

“I guess my mother will get her
Christmas wish,” Ryanne grumbled.

She could fly back to Carolina and
spend a few days at home alone. However that wouldn’t make much sense, just to
have to get back on a plane a couple of days later and fly to Florida to her
parents’ home.

Like a whiny teenager, she kicked
and pounded her arms and legs against the bed. Two weeks ago she didn’t want to
be at home for Christmas being inundated with her siblings’ stories of their
children’s accomplishments and kissing faces with spouses, nor see the look in
her mother’s eyes that screamed “When are you going to settle down and give me
some grandbabies?”

Ugh! It was looking more and more
like that was what she was going to get for Christmas. Rolling off the bed, Ryanne
went to the desk and turned on her laptop. Once it booted up, she reached
inside her leather case for her cell phone. As she removed the phone, a sheet
of paper came fluttering out.

Leaning over, she swiped the paper
from the floor. About to shove it back in her bag, the words drew her gaze. It
was the ad Mattie had e-mailed her.

Frowning as she gathered her things
together, Ryanne couldn’t recall bringing the ad with her. It was like a bad
penny; the ad just kept turning up.

Tapping in the web address for the
airline’s booking page, she waited for it to load as she read the advertisement
again.

The single life—for some a curse, for
others a blessing. Whether you’re nursing a breakup, seeking “the one,” or just
looking for a little spark in your single life, here is the best destination
for singles to meet, greet, and mingle around the world. Join us on our
inexpensive hosted singles ski vacation for a big mountain experience, great
food, fun-filled happy hours, and lots of other singles to enjoy it all with.
Don't be lonely this holiday. Wave good-bye to the tub of ice cream, put down
the remote, and get traveling.

Staring at the ad, she tried to
remind herself how silly it was for anyone to go to a singles retreat for the Christmas
holidays. However, she wasn’t feeling the same indifference for the holiday
getaway as she had in her office getting ready for the conference. Now, her mind
played with the idea of going somewhere for a few days and just relaxing before
being consumed in the familial atmosphere of the McCall brood.

Due to the last-minute conference,
her parents were not expecting her until Sunday night. If she went to Starview,
Colorado for a few days, no one would even miss her. If things went well, she
could extend her stay to Christmas.

Tapping her lip with a finger, she
seriously considered the possibility of going. Lowering her gaze down the page,
she noted the dates for the resort adventure and realized that it had already
begun, yesterday in fact. She doubted they would even have any more space
available.

Setting the sheet down, she tapped
in the airport and dates to see if travel was possible. She wasn’t a snow driver,
so renting a car and cruising along the icy mountain roads was not going to
happen.

When the screen displayed not only a
flight option but one that would allow her to arrive that very night, her heart
began to race. It was such a reckless decision to go to a resort alone, knowing
that everyone there would be looking for an easy hookup.

Her mind replayed the conversation
with Todd and his taunt about the office thinking she took her job too
seriously and needed to get laid. Not that she’d ever believed sleazy Todd’s
words. However, it had been a long while since she’d dated or had anyone in her
bed besides her sky-blue vibrator.

Maybe I do need a hookup
. Picking up her cell, she dialed
the number from the ad.

“Hello, this is Stacy at Village
Resort. How may I assist you?” The professional tone of the woman’s voice came
clearly through the line.

Swallowing, Ryanne said, “Hi, Stacy.
I happened to see an ad for your holiday singles escape. I know it’s last
minute, but I was wondering…”

“If we still have suites available?”
Stacy provided when Ryanne’s voice faded away.

“Yes. If there are still any rooms.”

“How many singles will be in your
party?”

People were coming by groups?
“Just myself.”

There was a clicking sound on the
other end, then Stacy said, “We do have one single suite remaining. Would you
like me to reserve that for you?”

This is it. Starview or St. Augustine?
Taking a deep
breath, she blurted out, “Yes.”

She must have startled the
receptionist because she was silent for a moment, then she said cheerfully,
“Not a problem. When will you be arriving?” More clicking.

Glancing at her laptop screen for the
flight’s time of arrival, she gave Stacy the info. “Do you have a shuttle
service from the airport?”

“I can request a pickup for you.
Once we get everything confirmed, I will get all your flight information for
our driver.”

“Great.” Ryanne was beginning to
feel excited about the trip. She still wasn’t looking forward to meeting and
mingling with strangers, or skiing, but she’d have a few more days of freedom,
and for that she could smile.

As she answered questions from
Stacy, Ryanne began booking her flight arrangements. When the resort
receptionist asked for her credit card information, she pulled the plastic from
her wallet and typed it into the airline system too as she read it out to the clerk
at Starview.

Soon, she had her flight plans
booked and rebooked.

“You are all set, Ms. McCall. We
wish you safe travels and will see you soon.” Stacy’s lively tone was
contagious.

“Yes, you will.” Ryanne hung up the
phone and began to pack her suitcase. She’d only brought professional clothes
with her, nothing that said “I’m available,” but she didn’t care.  She’d smile
and men would flirt with her, give her ego a mighty boost before she had to
spend days in the den of wives and mothers.

*           *           *

“Oh my…that was
amazing
.”

Carson walked into the main room of
the double suite to see a dirty blonde woman plastered against Phillip, in a
skirt too short and tight for Colorado mountain weather, a low-cut, revealing sweater,
and green knee-length leather and fur boots.

A shirtless Phillip grabbed the
woman’s ass and thrust his pelvis against her. “It was great. Thanks. I believe
your friends are waiting on you for dinner.”

Only his friend Phillip, in the
forty-five minutes Carson had been gone, could have managed to find a girl,
convince her to join him back at the room, and bang her. Of course, Carson
admitted, at the singles event it didn’t take much convincing. Most of the
women there were trying to get laid from sun up to hours beyond midnight. Too
bad he was a little more conservative about who he had sex with, unlike
Phillip, so Carson hadn’t had sex yet. In the last two days alone, Phillip had
done it with nine different girls, at nine different times. Carson only knew that
because his friend was keeping count.